All For Strings - Theory Workbook 1 (Violin)

By Gerald E. Anderson

I used this in conjuction with the All for Strings Book 1 with my son and had no problem following the directions. Did a nice job of reinforcing the concepts in the lesson book. There is an answer book--the conductor's answer book for all for strings theory. I...

didn't use it though, because I am well familiar with the theory on both violin and piano.

I love this theory book! It really helps my violin students grasp the why behind what we play. I especially like the finger pattern worksheets for each key so that the student learns better when they are to lower different fingers for different keys. There is also a strong emphasis...

on rhythm, note reading, the violin notes in relation to the piano keys, symbols and terms, and other important things.Some of the "music math" can be a little challenging, but you can tailor it to each student and have them skip that exercise if needed.

This is in no way a book that you can just assign pages to your student and then send them on home to do. There are terms and concepts out of nowhere which you are going to need to explain before the student attempts the work. A minor, but real...

beef, is that on all of the keyboard charts (and there are many-- the book states to the student that it is important to relate the pitches on the violin to the keyboard), the black keys are not filled in. I teach piano as well as strings, and *I* was making mistakes. The directions are a bit complex and involved. It is all well and good that children learn to read directions thoroughly, but this isn't really the place to work on that. On the plus side, this series is cheap, and it does cover a lot of information. But I'm still unsure if I think that is worth all of the trouble I've listed above.

There is no teacher answer key copy available for sale, so you must make your own. As you do this, you will discover why they haven't produced one: there are too many answers that have various correct responses. It makes it hell to correct the pages, especially if you...

are in a classroom setting. These books are obviously intended to only be used with the All for Strings method. If you use any other method book, you will find concepts poppling up that you probably have not reached yet in your lessons. There are games and puzzle pages that involve other knowledge that younger students will not have yet encountered, such as long division. This is in no way a book that you can just assign pages to your student and then send them on home to do. There are terms and concepts out of nowhere which you are going to need to explain before the student attempts the work.

I think this book is great! I just started teaching violin lessons and I think this book will really help me to help my young students learn about violin/music theory. I only wish it came with an answer key because even I don't know as much theory as...

I want to. However, I am mostly teaching very young elementary age kids, so it will be mainly the basics for me. I am very happy with this book!